Dear South Africa,

I would have liked to have more of an upbeat and hopeful letter to you but the reality, the real reality, is that we’re a country of deep division and intense trauma. We are a people who do not know each other, once the babalas of the rainbow nation faded away we were left to face the decisions that were made the night before.

We had to look into each other’s faces without the rainbow-tinted high. To be honest what we saw of each other was not a pretty sight. From 2015 to today there has been an awakening of sorts, what some would call a revival in church. The truth of who we are is finally coming to light. And it is this ugly truth. This shift in idea and thought that seeks to break the ‘peace’. This ‘peace’ however needs to be broken for there to be a real birth of a nation.

Looking into 2018 I hope above all hope that this is the year where oppressors begin to see the pain and trauma of their actions upon those oppressed. I would hope for perpetrators of racism, sexism, homophobia, and ableism to see their impact and begin to do a deep work internally and systematically. This nation cannot heal through government intervention but through community work. The hard work that takes each of us to the dark places where we fear to go in, it is there where our healing begins…

 

Running, running,

Stumbling though the cold.

Hands grappling against cold wet concrete.

Where is the light?

 

Breathing, breathing,

The dampness sits heavy in the air

Eyes barely making out any shape or form.

I see a glimmer…

 

Crying, crying!

As the light hits  and the warmth surrounds.

The brightness too much to bear, an uncomfortable comfort.

Into the light…

 

Hopefully this year we find each other, hopefully, we find the light.

Ntobeko

[For more Dear South Africa letters from a variety of people, click here]